Nutella Pop Tarts!

May 10, 2010

I have a confession to make: I have never bought a pop tart in my life, ever. And although I went ahead and made strawberry pop tarts after finding a gorgeous recipe online, I didn’t really have anything to compare them with. So I couldn’t say things like “Oh it was the even better than the store bought one that awfully dry and has a tonne of preservatives and whatnot.” And frankly, it didn’t bother me much because the ones I made got rave reviews from all the eaters and the cutesy photos garnered some Stumble love as well.

Today, with some leftover pie dough in my freezer and a bottle of Nutella staring at me from across the room, I realised it was high time I ripped open the seal of that bottle for some Nutella happiness. One spoon for me, one spoon for the pop tarts seemed like a good ratio when it came to dolloping the pie dough with the Nutella; and that’s exactly what I did.

All you need is some pie dough and Nutella.

Start by rolling out and cutting into 1×3 inch rectangles.

Next, dollop some Nutella chocolate cream on the dough, making sure it’s only on one of the short edges and not too close to it.

Then fold the other side over the Nutella and seal the edges by gently pinching the sides with your fingers and then crimping the edges with a fork.

Pop this into the fridge for about 15 minutes

Once that’s done, remove it and bake it in a preheated oven at 170C/350F for 10-12 minutes.

Next, pull it out to brush it with a little egg wash for a nice, golden sheen.

Pop it back into the oven for another 5-7 minutes.

Letting it cool afterward is optional because, well, it’s Nutella! The only thing I’d do differently is find a way to maintain the gooey texture of Nutella instead of letting it dry out into the pie dough. I thought not poking the tops with knives and forks might help keep the moisture in, but I was wrong. Maybe next time I will thin it down with a little cream. But then I’m afraid, everything will get too mushy. What do you think?

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I’m told that if you freeze the filled pop tarts before baking them, then they don’t dry up as much… it kinda makes sense to me since pre-freezing would ensure that the filling won’t heat up too fast and therefore not dry up… hope that helps!

YUM! I love poptarts and I love nutella – yet I’d never thought of making nutella poptarts! They look crazy delicious … but I’m not sure how healthy they are for breakfast – perhaps as dessert instead?

Hello…I just stumbled on your post by chance…very interesting way to use up some dough. I just thought I’d take a stab at your questioning the Nutella dryness. I get the feeling that due to the fact of the North American product holding a much higher ratio of sugar vs. real chocolate…might be the root of the evil doing ;o)
If you are wondering what I could possibly mean by this…Did anyone know that the Nutella sold in Italy does not hold anywhere near the amount of sugar added to suit our so called undiscerning palettes?
I know…that may seem harsh and I agree…but those are the unfortunate realities of how we are perceived by the manufacturer.
Therefore, maybe blend in some quality bittersweet chocolate to counter balance this problem…and who knows…a knew recipe might just turn out some surprising results.
Thank you for your lovely recipe idea…you just inspired me to open my mind to left-over dough ;0)
Flavourful wishes, Claudia

We don’t even get poptarts in New Zealand, but I’ve tried them a few times when in different countries. You’re not missing anything. But this looks great – what’s better than pastry, chocolate and hazelnuts? I’m off to make some now. Yum.

Second of all I wanted to make this for my boyfriend who has celiac disease. So, instead of pie dough, I made Gluten Free pizza bread mix and just put the nutella into rolled out pieces of that dough. Now, not only did it work out well, but when I used the bread mix, the nutella inside it stayed nice and gooey! So there is always an option if you are really into the Nutella gooeyness. Just wanted to let you know!!! Thank you for the recipe. My boyfriend and I love it!

Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh oh my gosh. So gorgeous and such a great idea. I’ve bookmarked this and will make this for sure. I can’t believe I’d never come across your blog before! So so beautiful. I’m already a fan!

[…] 99: Making Pop-Tarts! So once again I had a unique recipe burning a hole in my brain from purplefoodie.com and I had to try it. It’s for pop-tarts. Yes, that’s right, those dessert squares that […]

I LOVE Pop Tarts and so does my girlfriend. So I thought I would try making some for her for something different! Your recipe is probably my favourite so far, I can’t wait to give it a shot!
Provided all that Nutella doesn’t end up in my mouth first…

I discovered Nutella while I was in Germany… and when I came back to the states, was thrilled to actually notice it on our shelves as well. I did notice a bit of a change in flavor, but brushed it off as not relevant. When I read the post about the sugar content being different in the US version verses the Italian version it all made sense. Interesting to know that manufacturers think Americans need more sugar…..

I have always wanted to understand the underlying reason for the technique wherein things are first put into the refrigerator or chillers and then put into oven..why is this done….
Had visited Cinnabon outlet and saw then first make the chocolate cinnamon rolls then put it in chillers then again in oven …repeat this twice or thrice before the final roll is ready to eat. Why is this alternating of temperatures done?

It’s depends on the recipe, so I can’t generalise based on your comment. But about Cinnabon – it seems like they do so to retard the yeast acting on the dough. They probably prefer a slow rise instead of a quick rise in hot and humid Bombay.

First, these look AMAZING. I plan to try them for a friends baby shower soon. Second, you may already have solved the problem with them drying out, and its just a random thought but maybe a little clarified butter or canola oil added to the nutella? not sure, just a thought though.

About Me

Hi, I'm Shaheen and I am a pastry chef, teacher and writer trained at Le Cordon Bleu Paris and London on multiple scholarships awarded from The James Beard Foundation and The Culinary Trust. I'm currently obsessed with making the perfect canéle. More about me.